I am lame
By Chris | March 7, 2009
I know, I know. I have disappointed my eight readers. I have not been here to blog in some time. So, I am dropping by to say, “I am still alive”. Between commuting to work, working, walking the dog, make dinner, ect ect. Life becomes quite busy. I have not picked up the camera in a long time, sad really. I do have one decent excuse though.
I am participating in the Ride to Conquer Cancer on June 20, 21. At least, I hope to. I must raise at least $2500 in donations for the BC Cancer Foundation in order to participate. The ride is approximately 260k from Vancouver, BC to Seattle, WA. Therefore, my weekends have been spent on my bicycle. I need to get my butt back into shape for this trip. Anyways, I would greatly appreciate any donations. I have $420 in sponsorship so far. Visit my page to make donation or check out more information about the cause and the ride.
Maybe on my next training ride, I should bring my camera. Maybe grab a few decent shots along the way. I should actually blog about my journey here as the Ride for Cancer blog is really lame. I can’t post pics or video. I can post a link and that is about it. So, see you here!
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Chase Jarvis
By Chris | January 12, 2009
Ooops! I missed the last Inspirational Monday. This week I am being a good boy. Also, I ended up finding plumbing work in Vancouver. That means I still have weekends to shoot.
Chase Jarvis is a Seattle based ROCK STAR behind the camera. His images are crisp, exciting, fun, and very dramatic. The hair on my neck tingles when viewing his images. Being a verstatile photographer, he can shoot anything from ad campaigns to mountain landscapes.
Chase’s website features stunning photography and a very personable and entertaining video interviews with Chase and his staff. Featuring his all-star staff makes me realize he is a down to earth guy who credits the people around him. This shows his humble character though he is a cutting edge visionary.
Don’t waste any more time here. Check out his site and meet a rock star! Don’t forget to watch his videos.
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Heading to Alberta
By Chris | January 3, 2009
During these had times caused by the “financial crisis” I had expected to NOT be working for some time. Here in Vancouver condo projects have been shelved. Current projects are already manned up and nothing is coming out of the ground. In Alberta, the oil companies have shelved or post-poned many projects. The low price of oil makes planned projects not financially viable.
Luckily, there is a short but good paying job in Ft. McMurray that are hungry for some plumbers. This is ironic as most pipefitters in Alberta hold a steam ticket rather than a plumbing one. This works to my advantage since I hold a plumbing ticket. So, I will be flying out tomorrow to take a chance of landing a position on Monday morning. If I do land the gig, I should be back in about three weeks.
Of course, money is a huge part of taking up photography. The hobby grabs cash from your pocket from all angles; be it from classes, gear(the sky is the limit), magazine subscriptions, web hosting, workshops, or image storage. I do intend to write an article about the expense of the hobby in the future. Right now, I need to earn some more cash to purchase more camera gear. I have these puppies in my cross hairs PocketWizard Plus II Transceivers 
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Looking back at 08
By Chris | December 28, 2008
I know it’s quite cliche to do a “look back” at the year that has just pasted. It’s so predictable, the minute after Christmas every media outlet does a special “look back”. Well, guess what? I am going to “keep up with the Jones” and do the same thing! So there!
2008 has been an exciting year for me. At about this time last year, I pledged to take my photography more seriously by more learning through books, blogs, youtube, and old fashioned practice.I must admit that it has paid off. I have seen my images improve over the last year both technically and creatively. Luckily, I had a good year financially to allow the purchase of more gear and an extended vacation.
Of course, there is always room for improvement as I am no where near the calibre of Chase Jarvis or Steve McCurry. Yet, I feel my images have improved a degree. Partly, it was the gear and partly for starting to develop my own ‘vision’. I really get a kick out an image that not just looks cool but tells a story that can put a smile on the viewers face. If I can get a smile, chuckle, or even a tear from the viewer, I know that the image did it’s job. I find satisfaction in that. That is the draw to photography for me.
So what is my favourite image from 2008? Well, I didn’t shoot a million shots this year like some pro photogs do but I have shot much more than I have in the past. Of course, the Thailand trip was like being a child in a candy shop. There I was with eyes of golf balls with camera in hand. I wasn’t just taking snapshots, I BECAME a photographer for four weeks. It was my goal to document our journey in an artsy photojournal way. I think I captured a few interesting shots. The shots below are my favourites of 2008.
OR
What’s my goals for 2009?
- I will learn more about off-camera flash, strobe, speedlight, or whatever you want to call it. I have been looking at many images created with off-camera flash. The effects are dramatic and the gear is light.
- Take more portraits of family and friends. I want to put my off-camera flash and reflector to work. I hear they are even willing to pay me!
- Subscriptions. There is one magazine that I love. I am wasting too much money paying retail price off the magazine rack. Photolife is a Canadian magazine that isn’t loaded up with too much advertising and the articles are indepth and informative. I am also considering a subscription to NAPP, the National Association of Photoshop Professionals, as well. I think it’s a little pricey but they offer tons of affiliated discounts and training.
- Portfolio. I should have enough decent images to put together a Flash based portfolio.
- Give this blog a new look to match the new portfolio. The new look also needs to be more browser friendly.
- On the non-photography front. In the financially challenging year ahead, I will upgrade my pipefitting and plumbing skills to offer a wider skill set to employers. I will be taking the challenge test for the Red Seal Steam Fitter ticket. Perhaps, a gas service course to brush up on my furnace servicing skills will be in the works too. I got to keep working to fund this very expensive hobby called, “photography”.
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He shoots! He scores!
By Chris | December 23, 2008
Today I went to capture some more winter scenery. One place I stopped was the bird sanctuary by Art Knapp’s in Surrey. The wet lands were frozen and had evidence of people skating there. I stopped just in time to catch a few families taking their kids for a skate.
I felt awkward about asking one father to take pictures of him and his kids but my desire to get some ” winter Canadiana” photo’s won over my shyness. He was very open to the idea as I promised to e-mail a few photos to him. I think they turned out pretty good.
There is something special about watching little kids play hockey. The boy, Justin(is think), scores on his dad. You gotta know he loved that. Justin is a Timbit and will be playing between periods of the Vancouver Canuck game and Dallas Stars.
I really should get some cards printed up. Though, I am not a pro photog it would be a more professional way of approaching strangers to ask for photo’s.
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